Sunday, January 6, 2008

Movies Movies Movies Movies Movies

There Will Be Blood

The first 14 minutes of this film has no dialogue. Then...welcome to Overacting City! I'd been putting off watching this movie because the screener was two discs long. Too long, too long, too long. I understand it's an epic sort of film, but I thought it was a tad heavy-handed. It was a powerful film, yes, but it was a bit much still. Both Daniel Day-Lewis and Paul Dano were absolutely over-the-top, but I can't fault them for that really. I blame the script and the direction.

I was also extraordinarily annoyed by the soundtrack, courtesy of Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood. I found it discordant and incongruous to the film. I hate even more that critics have raved about the music. Ridiculous. I like Radiohead, but this just didn't work, and it was in no way as "revolutionary" as critics have touted. Honestly, it sounds like the soundtrack to Lost. Not impressed. Angered, in fact.

This is not to say that There Will Be Blood isn't interesting. It is. And, notwithstanding its length, it's a good film. It's just not *as* good as everyone claims it is. It could've and should've been better, and I hope that No Country for Old Men kicks its ass at the Oscars. Go, creepy Javier Bardem, go!

The Kite Runner

This is another film that could've and should've been better. Great story -- absolutely heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time. But such a mediocre film. What a disappointment. Maybe I need to watch it again. Maybe I was too wiped out from watching There Will Be Blood to give this a fair shot.

Atonement

I hate Keira Knightley. Hate. I can't really explain exactly why, but I do. Even so, I appreciated Atonement. It was a beautiful film even though the story itself made me very angry. Knightley was actually quite good, and James McAvoy just melted my heart. McAvoy is not that handsome (in fact, I dare say he's somewhat not attractive; he did play Mr. Tumnus the faun in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, after all), but, boy, is he charming. I love him so.

As I mentioned before, the plot quite incensed me. I found it so unfair, but that's what made the movie so good -- it made me feel. Atonement isn't nearly as amazing as critics have implied, but it is a fine movie, especially for those who enjoy period pieces.

The Golden Compass

Funny enough, here's a movie I didn't think was as bad as everybody else warned me it was. There are tons of flaws, but I really loved the talking animals. They were so cute. In some ways, I'm easy to please. You just have to watch it, knowing it's not a very good movie, and then you won't be that let down.

National Treasure: Book of Secrets

Now what the hell is this movie doing in this list? Hey, I watch dumb blockbusters as much as the next person does. And that's all this was. Whee.

13 comments:

  1. DAHAHAHA! Ok, the lesson here is: YOU AND I SHOULD NEVER GO TO THE MOVIES TOGETHER! ;)

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  2. boo to keira knightley. she bugs me, too.

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  3. I must have the worst taste in movies ever because I loved the Golden Compass. We ranked it as one of the best movies we've seen this year.

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  4. i have such high hopes for the kite runner as the book was really well-written and the story was wonderful. i hope your second viewing leads to a different conclusion.

    i tried to read atonement, got 40 pages in and just couldn't get any farther as i was bored stiff. i don't know that i'm all that thrilled seeing the movie because of my icky reaction to the book.

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  5. I hate Keira too. My husband thinks she HOT. Ugh.

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  6. Thanks for the reviews! I haven't seen any of these. I'm kind of scared to, because several, if not all, of them are based on books.

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  7. I keep meaning to read Kite Runner. I am almost done with A Thousand Splendid Suns (same author) and like it. Maybe I will rent the movie instead, now. I am feeling lazy... :)

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  8. I really wanted to see Atonement cuz of the great reviews. Now maybe I'll just wait for the DVD.

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  9. I totally think James McAvoy is 'ugly but sexy.' Totally.

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  10. okay, i want to see national treasure. ha!

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  11. The only thing that bugs me about Keira Knightley is her teeth. I don't know what it is...

    As for The Golden Compass. I'm generally not into those types of movies but I liked it mostly because of the talking animals.

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  12. I <3 National Treasure. Maybe it's because I'm a history dork, but I love both of the movies :)

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  13. I like Keira. Not a fan of her teeth and I want to feed her every time I see her on TV, but I don't hate her. As for those other movies, I will probably never see most of them so I'm glad you (sort of) told me what they're about. :)

    I'm lying, I'll probably see National Treasure 2 at some point. The first one was entertaining.

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